Alderaan
Hide[Source]:"While Coruscant has always been considered the heart of the Republic, to some extent, Alderaan has been its soul." :―A HoloNet dossier on Alderaan[src] Alderaan, located in the Core Worlds, was the second planet in the Alderaan system, and the home of many famous heroes, including Leia Organa Solo, Bail Organa, and Ulic Qel-Droma. Renowned galaxy-wide for their planet's unspoiled beauty, refined culture, and commitment to peace, Alderaanians worked with and around the land to preserve as much of the natural surroundings as they could. Originally the home of the Killiks, Alderaan was later conquered by Humans. Despite a battle during the Great Galactic War and a civil war during the subsequent Cold War, Alderaan remained peaceful during much of galactic history. However, in 0 BBY, Grand Moff Tarkin and the Galactic Empire wanted to intimidate the galaxy into submission, and destroyed the unarmed and peaceful planet using the first Death Star's superlaser. Terrainhttp://starwars.wikia.com/index.php?title=Alderaan&action=edit&section=1Edit http://images.wikia.com/starwars/images/a/a6/Alderaan_moutians.jpgAlderaan's mountains Considered the "Shining Star" of the Core Worlds, wild grasslands and old mountain ranges dominated the planet's land surface. Large oceans and scattered inland seas provided the planet with ideal conditions for a large variety of flora and fauna to develop. As such, Alderaan was the homeworld of some of the galaxy's most famous animals, such as the nerf and the thranta. Alderaanian cities were often built with great care taken to protect nature. One such city, Crevasse City was built on the walls of a canyon, nearly invisible from above. Others were built on stilts along the shoreline or under the polar ice. The capital, Aldera, known for its university, was built on a small island in the center of a caldera. In the Castle Lands, the remains of Killik mounds stood as a silent testament to the indigenous species that had disappeared for unknown reasons. Philosophers, poets, and artists often visited the Castle Lands for inspiration and meditation. Alderaan was home to more than eight thousand subspecies of grass and an even larger number of wildflowers. Its flora also included a massive variety of spices, herbs, and grains. The planet had no major oceans, but it had a single polar ice cap. The rest of Alderaan's surface water was composed of thousands of lakes and connecting waterways. Faunahttp://starwars.wikia.com/index.php?title=Alderaan&action=edit&section=2Edit Alderaan had many rare species not seen anywhere else in the galaxy, as well as many common creatures. Among the more notable ones were the: *Nerf *Grazer *Thranta *Stalking bird *Manka cat *Woolly moth *Dainty creature *Sea-mouse Florahttp://starwars.wikia.com/index.php?title=Alderaan&action=edit&section=3Edit *Hydenock tree *T'iil flowers Societyhttp://starwars.wikia.com/index.php?title=Alderaan&action=edit&section=4Edit :"Any time is the time to visit Alderaan! How can one not enjoy a planet where peace and beauty are common preoccupations, and art and learning are the popular pastimes?" :―Lord Tion[src] http://images.wikia.com/starwars/images/7/74/UniversityOfAldera.jpgUniversity of Alderaan Alderaanian culture valued education, the performing and fine arts, and peaceful resolutions to conflicts. They placed high value in their participation in the Galactic Senate—and later, its Imperial equivalent. The Alderaanians constantly sought a harmonious existence with their surroundings, evident in their integration of their society into the natural terrain of Alderaan. Alderaanians were known for love of philosophy. An average Alderaanian was very educated and cultured. Poets and artists thrived on Alderaan. The beauty moved the pens of poets, while the vast grasslands served as a canvas for grass paintings. Alderaan was also famous for its cuisine. The large variety of spices and herbs allowed chefs to experiment and create some of the finest dishes in the galaxy. Steamed Alderaanian spiced wine was a favored beverage among many. Some of Alderaan's major exports included wine, art, and luxury goods. Governmenthttp://starwars.wikia.com/index.php?title=Alderaan&action=edit&section=5Edit Although a democratic society, Alderaan was headed by a hereditary constitutional monarchy, with the House of Organa presiding over the High Court and legislative High Council of Alderaan. Its monarchs have variously borne the titles "Prince," "First Chairman," "Queen," "King," and "Viceroy." Traditionally, the heir of the Alderaan throne also serves in the High Council of Alderaan and a term as Senator of Alderaan. A vizier helped the monarch rule. Alderaan's government deliberately halted itself from so much as questioning spacecraft leaving or arriving on the planet. Several decades before the Clone Wars, a political conflict between the high houses of Alderaan arose. This conflict, known as the Alderaan Ascendancy Contention, was the result of the inability of the great families (among them the House of Organa and the House of Antilles) to choose the next Viceroy of Alderaan. Three separate votes yielded no winner, and so the Alderaanians asked for Jedi mediation to resolve the contention. The Jedi, including Jorus C'baoth, considered the intricacies of the situation, and decided that House Organa bore the rightful claim to the throne. Bail Organa was the leader of Alderaan and was on the planet when it was destroyed, while his heir and (secretly-adopted) daughter Princess Leia served as Senator of Alderaan in the Imperial Senate. http://images.wikia.com/starwars/images/3/37/Aldera_City.JPGAldera, the planet's capital Known Monarchs of Alderaanhttp://starwars.wikia.com/index.php?title=Alderaan&action=edit&section=6Edit *Unidentified Queen (–circa 3,653 BBY) *King Bouris Ulgo (circa 3,653 BBY–?) *Queen Mazicia Organa (pre 22 BBY - ? BBY) *Queen Breha Organa (pre or after 22 BBY–0 BBY) After the Destruction of Alderaan in 0 BBY, no queen took the title officially, although Leia Organa Solo had claim to the title. Known First Chairpersons and/or Viceroys of Alderaanhttp://starwars.wikia.com/index.php?title=Alderaan&action=edit&section=7Edit *Senator Bail Organa Known Senators of Alderaanhttp://starwars.wikia.com/index.php?title=Alderaan&action=edit&section=8Edit *Senator Gaul Panteer (–circa 3,653 BBY) *Senator Ravein (unknown BBY) *Senator Agrippa Aldrete (pre-33 BBY) *Senator Bail Antilles (—32 BBY)[6] *Senator Bail Organa (32 BBY–1 BBY) *Senator Leia Organa (1 BBY–0 BBY) *Senator Leia Organa (5 ABY–11 ABY) *Senator Cal Omas (—28 ABY) Historyhttp://starwars.wikia.com/index.php?title=Alderaan&action=edit&section=9Edit Pre-Republichttp://starwars.wikia.com/index.php?title=Alderaan&action=edit&section=10Edit http://images.wikia.com/starwars/images/b/b1/Killikmounds.jpgThe Petrified mounds of the Killiks in the Castle Lands In 1,000,000 BBY the native Killiks evolved from the most intelligent Non-sentient species on the planet.[7] The indigenous Killiks built the Castle Lands of Oroboro circa 35,000 BBY. At some point, the Killiks colonized nearby Alsakan. They were taken away from Alderaan 30,000 BBY by the Celestials after consuming all of Alderaan's natural resources, and long believed extinct by Humanity until re-encountered in the Unknown Regions. Human colonists came to the planet from Coruscant, via the Herglic Trade Empire, in 27,500 BBY and built a peaceful civilization in harmony with nature. Old Republichttp://starwars.wikia.com/index.php?title=Alderaan&action=edit&section=11Edit Alderaan was a Core Founder of the Galactic Republic in 25,053 BBY and one of the anchor-points for early hyperspace exploration. Alderaan was headquarters of Alderaan Royal Engineers, an early Republic shipwright. Alderaanian colonists settled Nim Drovis. During the Mandalorian Wars, the planet was threatened with invasion by the forces of Cassus Fett, but the entire invasion force was prematurely decimated, due to misuse of an ancient Sith artifact. http://images.wikia.com/starwars/images/b/bf/Alderaan-Hope.jpgAlderaan's picturesque landscape just prior to the Battle of Alderaan During the peak of the Great Galactic War, the planet's peace and tranquility was shattered by a full-scale Sith Empire invasion. The Sith quickly overwhelmed the local defense forces and took the entire royal family hostage. In response, a Republic and Jedi taskforce launched a swift counter-offensive against the Sith; recapturing the planet and inflicting a heavy defeat on the Sith. As a consequence of the Sith invasion, the Alderaanian leadership adopted a hardline militarist stance towards the Sith Empire in the Galactic Senate. In 3,653 BBY, the Treaty of Coruscant ended the centuries-long conflict in favor of the Sith Empire—which had earlier launched a devastating attack on the galactic capital Coruscant. In protest, the Senator Gaul Panteer, the Alderaanian Crown Prince, walked out of the Senate and withdrew Alderaan from the Republic. The crown prince's actions created much division in Alderaan. While many supported his actions, others were outraged by this secession from the Republic. The crisis worsened with the assassination of the prince and the death of his consort a few days later. The Alderaanian Parliament was quickly torn apart by infighting between rival houses. A bloody civil war quickly ensued when one of these houses attempted a military coup. In the subsequent Interstellar Cold War between the Republic and the Sith, the planet was the site of a number of border skirmishes and proxy battles between Republic and Sith forces. The Republic backed House of Organa while the Sith backed a lesser royal house which sought to reclaim the throne. While neither side had military forces on Alderaan, the civil war on Alderaan helped sparked a return to full-scale conflict between the two superpowers. During the last five centuries of the Old Republic, Alderaan nobility was known to enjoy the seafood from Lamaredd distributed by Bartyn Gourmet Delicacies.[8] At some point after the conflict, Alderaan presumably rejoined the Republic. In 27 BBY, it was personally protected by Jedi Master Eeth Koth during the Ashaar Khorda crisis. Clone Warshttp://starwars.wikia.com/index.php?title=Alderaan&action=edit&section=12Edit http://images.wikia.com/starwars/images/3/35/CR70_alderaan.jpgThe Sundered Heart lands in Aldera in 19 BBY, right after the end of the Clone Wars. As a whole, Alderaan strongly opposed the Military Creation Act, they had their own Alderaan Security Detail, but remained loyal to the Republic during the Clone Wars. Alderaan allowed Refugee Relief Movement settlement by displaced exiles from Ando and other Separatist worlds who wished to remain Republic citizens. Due to its assistance of these exiles, Alderaan was attacked personally (nearly "being destroyed") by General Grievous. With the rise of the New Order, Queen Breha Organa and Viceroy Bail Organa adopted Leia Amidala Skywalker. The Galactic Empire violently terminated the Jedi Praxeum on the planet, though a few students escaped. Shortly afterwards, Jedi Knight Ylenic It'kla led a remnant of the Caamasi people to settle on Alderaan after Palpatine desolated Caamas. Ylenic served as Trustant of the Caamasi Remnant and adviser to the Organas. Galactic Civil Warhttp://starwars.wikia.com/index.php?title=Alderaan&action=edit&section=13Edit :"It's time Alderaan stopped resisting the Empire and started fighting it." :―Leia Organa's position on the Galactic Civil War[src] Immediately after the formation of the Galactic Empire, Alderaan was wracked by anti-Imperial protests, mainly from alien refugees who were now forced to pay an exorbitant tax to return home. Alderaan eventually became a safe haven for rebellious elements who wished to fight the growing oppression of the Empire, which helped bring on the planet's very downfall. When Bail Organa, Garm Bel Iblis, and Mon Mothma formally created the Rebel Alliance, many Alderaanians volunteered their resources and lives, despite the still fresh memories of the Clone Wars. Many of the early warriors of the Alliance, and subsequently, many of its leaders and officers, were Alderaanian. 'New Verse Vergence' 'Source' http://starwars.wikia.com/wiki/Alderaan Category:Planets